One person was hospitalised on Tuesday morning after inhaling smoke at an 11th floor apartment fire that took place in the 15 storey Playmon F building in Benidorm. The fire started at around 11 am in this apartment block, one of the most disturbing fires in the city in recent years, due to the large number of floors that are in use, but fortunately it is now completely extinguished.

It is understood that 13 firefighters attended the incident which required them to confine residents of apartments above the fire to their homes. A number of adjacent flats were evacuated as the fire took hold but, other than the one smoke affected person, no other residents, either in the building or in the apartment itself have reported any injuries. Indeed the affected apartment is said to have been uninhabited.

The origin of the fire is still unknown, although when the warning was given it was indicated to have started in the kitchen of the house. However, once on the scene, and after extinguishing the flames, the damage was such that the Firemen were unable to confirm where the fire first took hold.

The Playmon F building is known to have a long list of problems dating back many years. It was born in the 70s as a major apartment complex at a cost of 450 million pesetas, with an Olympic pool and tennis courts it was opened in August 1971 by the tennis player Manuel Santana. It has 420 studios and apartments divided across 15 floors of which 130 homes are owned by banks, many of them now occupied by squatters.

However when the real estate bubble burst the prices dropped through the floor leaving many owners unable to pay their mortgages. Of the 420 apartments, there are only a handful who pay the 700 euros a year community charge and as such the building has fallen into disrepair with defaulters accumulating a debt of almost a million euros.

For the moment, however, police presence at the site has been increased while fire investigators work on site to determine the cause.

#AhoraMarinaBaixa Incendio en el edificio Playmon F. El fuego se inicia en la cocina de un piso de la planta 11 que en ese momento se encontraba vacío.Los bomberos acudieron inmediatamente al lugar y confinaron en sus casas a los vecinos de la planta 11 y superiores. En total 13 efectivos del Parque de Bomberos de Benidorm participaron en la extinción de las llamas que calcinaron buena parte de la vivienda.Una mujer tuvo que ser atendida por inhalación de humo por los Servicios Sanitarios.

Posted by Ahora Marina Baixa on Tuesday, 16 July 2019

VIDEO COURTESY OF Benidorm & Costa Blanca News & Information Forum